Liquid medicines, vaccines, perfumes, wines and other fluids that are contained in a sealed container are currently very difficult to monitor and control. In addition to natural aging, elements such as heat, humidity, light, oxygen and even excessive vibration could dramatically affect the chemical composition of what is contained within the sealed container. For instance, when wine is bottled, it is necessary to control the liquid and gas contents of the bottle as it is sealed to ensure proper aging and prevent spoilage. Some wines may turn into vinegar if there is even a small amount of oxygen, bacteria, or other contamination present, while others may actually improve over time with the right mixture of gases present. Regardless of the mix of liquids and gasses present, stability of the contents and an uncompromised seal is critical.
For collectors of wine, controlling and monitoring the contents of valuable bottles is a major challenge. Even with complex wine vaults that carefully control temperature, humidity, light, and movement, a bottle of wine may still be ruined despite not being visibly opened or contaminated. Fraud can also be a problem, with expensive bottles of wine being refilled with cheaper contents and resold as new. However, checking the contents of a wine bottle for their quality or authenticity is most commonly accomplished by destroying the seal and opening the bottle, with the result that the only way to verify and monitor a valuable investment is by destroying it in the process.
Even if a handheld device were readily available to allow wine to be tested without destroying the seal and initiating the spoiling process, such a device would be of limited use in monitoring a significant collection of bottles or even a small collection of extremely valuable bottles. For example, such a device would require the bottle to be regularly removed from storage and handled, which could cause harmful stirring of the contents, changes in temperature, exposure to light or contaminants, risk of accidental breakage, and other detrimental effects.
What is needed, therefore, is an improved system for monitoring the contents of a sealed container while statically maintaining the sealed environment.